EW DVD Review: "Vicky Christina Barcelona"
By: Chris Nashawaty - Entertainment Weekly
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It seems like every time a new Woody Allen movie comes out, critics either wring their hands over how he's lost his touch, or proclaim a comeback.
Apparently, there's no middle ground. Which is a shame, because there's a place for films that are neither classics nor misfires. Take Allen's latest, "Vicky Christina Barcelona" -- a solid romantic comedy that never sets its sights too high.
In the past few years, Allen, the writer-director who's always had New York City running in his veins, has been on a quest for inspiration abroad. First in London with "Match Point" and others, and now Spain.
Set in picturesque Barcelona, where every other shot seems to feature a Gaudi architecture backdrop or a smoldering guitarist picking Flamenco tunes, Vicky Christina is an old-fashioned love triangle. Scarlett Johansson and Rebecca Hall star as a pair of American women spending the summer in Spain. Johansson, Allen's most recent muse, is Christina, an adventurous lover of life who's game for anything. Hall is super-rational, uptight, with a by-the-book fiancé back in the states. Early on, the two are propositioned by a hunky artist played by Javier Bardem. And guess who takes him up on his offer?
But things are just getting started.
Bardem, who gives the only performance that feels genuine-that he's not playing some Woody Allen archetype we've seen before-develops complicated relationships with both women, made even more complicated by the appearance of his unstable ex-wife played by Penelope Cruz. Love and commitment are the big issues here. But neither Vicky nor Christina bring much to the debate, especially Johansson, who's at least very good at pursing her lips and twirling her hair. It's Bardem, the seducer, who steals the film. Think of it as a great performance in an okay film.
Now for a look at what else is new on DVD: in "Max Payne", Mark Wahlberg brings a shoot 'em up video game to the big screen; in "The Express", Dennis Quaid coaches in a football drama; and in "Magnificent Obsession", Rock Hudson stars in a classic 1950's Technicolor melodrama.